The GI Bill
Endangered Species Act
Environmental Laws
The Space Program
The Peace Corps
Americorps
The Civil Rights Movement
Earned Income Tax Credit
Family & Medical Leave Act
Consumer Product Safety Commission
Americans With Disabilities Act
Freedom of Information Act
Women's right to control their reproductive future
Allowing citizens to view their own credit records
The Internet
Balancing the federal budget
The Brady Bill
(5-day wait on handgun purchases for background checks)
Lobbying Disclosure Act
"Motor-Voter" Act
The Voting Rights Act
Unemployment Insurance
Medicare/Medicaid
Food Stamps/WIC
Social Security
Peace between Israel and Egypt
Peace between Israel and Jordan
The Department of Education
The Department of Energy
The Department of Transportation
The Department of Housing and Urban Development
Labor Laws
The Marshall Plan
Winning World War II
Food Safety Laws
Workplace Safety Laws
The Tennessee Valley Project
The Civilian Conservation Corps
The Securites and Exchange Commission
Women's Right to Vote
Universal Public Education
National Weather Service
Product Labeling Laws
Truth in Advertising Laws
Morrill Land Grant Act
Rural Electrification
Public Universities
Bank Deposit Insurance (FDIC)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Public Broadcasting
Supporting the establishment of Israel
The United Nations
NATO
Victories of Progressives, Liberals and Democrats over the last century.
By Delaware Dem - October 14, 2005
No one has balanced any budget lately no matter if it is a D or a R and it will get worse under Trump....Trillions in debt no where to go but down.....the drain.....or up to heaven...
Good enough for you? Yes, I still have a voice don't you worry your little head about that....
First of all, good job on actually sourcing a list.
Now, let's take a quick look at it.
The List
1. THE CHALLENGE:
The challenge was to come up with at least 7 things liberals have done to benefit our country.
Please take note of the words "liberal" and "benefit".
These 2 words give us the criteria of the challenge.
A. Liberal:
Are the people enacting the legislation liberals?
Did these legislators really meet any modern definition of liberal?
Were they perhaps just Democrats from long ago who were actually fairly conservative?
Was the legislation really a bipartisan effort, instead of a pure creation of the Left?
B. Benefit:
Was each bit of legislation on the list truly a benefit?
Is the benefit of some of this legislation still open to debate?
2. CHALLENGE PROBLEMS:
To start with, I think this challenge should have been worded differently, because even people you thoroughly oppose are capable of doing a few good things along the way.
I have no problem with that.
I think anyone is capable of doing some good.
3. LIBERALS:
Not every Democrat from the past would consider himself a liberal at all, and certainly not the current variety of postmodern liberal we see today.
We may have a real problem equating past legislation by Democrats with "modern liberalism".
4. WAY BACK DEMOCRATS:
Some of the things on the list go all the way back to the 40's and 50's... a time when most Democrats were MUCH MORE CONSERVATIVE than half the Republicans are today.
A lot of these Democrats from the past certainly don't qualify as modern liberals.
5. BENEFICIAL:
I'm not at all sure every item on this list truly meets the challenge of being "beneficial"... I think some of these things are still open to debate.
I realize that from your point of view none of this legislation is open to debate,
but that doesn't mean everyone feels the same way.
Frankly, trying to meet the challenge condition of "beneficial" is fairly subjective.
It's obvious there will disagreement on some of these things.
6. LIBERAL, BIPARTISAN, or REPUBLICAN:
I'm not at all sure every item on this list was genuinely accomplished by liberals, rather than by a bipartisan effort, or even, in some cases, by a primarily Republican effort.
Conclusion:
A. I think it's entirely possible for liberals, with whom I generally disagree, to still accomplish some good things.
B. I'm not at all sure every item on this lists meets the criteria of being BENEFICIAL, or being accomplished by TRUE LIBERALS (in the modern sense) or being accomplished either SOLELY or PRIMARILY by the LEFT.
C. I think we could go point-by-point and debate many of the items on this list.. as many of them may not meet the criteria of the challenge.